Having donned the orange jersey for the first time less than two months ago, Dalglish could hardly be considered one of the guys in the locker room, having missed most of the highs and lows of the regular season. Now he has helped give his new team a spot in the league championship game in its first year in Houston.

"Hopefully the fans and the people in Major League Soccer can see that I've not come here for a holiday," said Dalglish, who joined the team in early September from Scottish side Hibernian FC. "I've come here to work hard and score goals."

Brian Mullan scored in the second half to seal the Rapids' fate, and Brad Davis and Dwayne De Rosario were instrumental in two scores each to cap a gritty team effort. But, in the end, it was Dalglish's finishing touch that helped the most.

Perhaps it was the Braveheart-themed introduction, the bagpipes — blue kilts and all — to lead the team onto the field, or a raucous crowd of 23,107 orange-clad fans filling the stands that gave the Scottish-born Dalglish the extra edge.

Early deficit

The Dynamo dominated the match from beginning to end but nonetheless found themselves trailing just four minutes into the match.

Coming off a corner kick, Dynamo defender Adrian Serioux was called for a handball inside the penalty box. Referee Brian Hall did not hesitate to point toward the penalty spot, and Jovan Kirovski converted against a helpless Pat Onstad for the 1-0 lead.

But less than 20 minutes later, Dalglish turned the tables on Colorado, giving the Dynamo their first lead of the match with his second goal of the night.

On a fast break in Rapids territory, De Rosario fed the ball to the left flank and Davis, who crossed long. An alert Mullan on the right crossed it back to the goalie box, where Dalglish buried it past keeper Joe Cannon in the 21st minute.

"The character that the guys showed to come back from 1-0 down is brilliant, but that's the team spirit we've got here," Dalglish said.

Dalglish had tied the match in the 10th minute with a low shot from 5 yards.

With three Rapids defenders on him, De Rosario dished the ball out to teammate Ricardo Clark, who immediately one-touched it back to De Rosario, who filtered it to a breaking Dalglish for the finish.

Dynamo coach Dominic Kinnear said despite Colorado going ahead, it was a matter of time for his players to step up.

"Just because they scored in the first (four minutes) doesn't take away our weapons and our attitude," Kinnear said. "You look at the clock and you say, 'There's still tons of time, and we're still a dangerous team.' "

Sealing the deal

Mullan added to the margin in the 71st minute, diving feet-first to meet a cross by
Alejandro Moreno
, who replaced Dalglish in the 65th minute. Davis and Moreno combined along the left before the Venezuelan international sent the pass to Mullan for the score that killed the Rapids' chances.

"They just get the ball up front and they run, and they make you pay," Colorado coach Fernando Clavijo said. "We just couldn't find a rhythm, and we paid for it."

Despite throwing players forward and substituting for more attack-minded individuals, the Rapids couldn't break the Dynamo defense in the second half. They were outshot 6-5.

It was the Rapids' second consecutive conference final loss. They fell to the L.A. Galaxy, last year's eventual champion.

Meanwhile, the Dynamo are headed to the MLS Cup final.

"This is a great feeling," De Rosario said. "This was another hurdle and we climbed it. The grand finale is next week."